The moment Lucy reached for the Key, she was surrounded by black. Everywhere she looked, there was not a speck of light. Giving a roll of her eyes, Lucy felt a small tug at her magical core. Lucy smiled as she let the tug pull a small amount of her magic from the container and let it guide her to where she hoped the Key resided. And it wasn't long before the voice spoke into her head.

"You are either a brave or incredibly foolish mage."

Lucy smiled as she gave the reply, "Let me take your test. Then judge me fairly."

"Fine."

That single word had Lucy shuddering as her images, in vivid color, began to revolve around her at an insane speed. Her eyes tried to track them and see what they were, only to feel dizzy.

"This is my trial; face yourself."

Lucy blinked when the images suddenly came to a halt. She recognized the room before, and it had her biting her lip. Then she was pulled into the image as it came alive. There before her on the bed was her mother, looking frail. A heaviness settled in her chest, and Lucy knew it was her heart hurting. This memory, for that, was what the images were, the day her mother died.

When her body began to move on its own, Lucy fought back. She didn't want to relive this. It was cruel. Did the Spirit mean to face the pain of her past? Her mind was swirling with so many questions as she came to a stop by the bed. Lucy felt her eyes start to burn with the unshed tears as her (now) tiny hands reached out. The moment Lucy held her mom's thin, fragile hands, she whimpered as all the pain came back.

Her father hadn't been there, and Miss Spetto had just left the room. Lucy let her eyes meet her mother's own dull and cloudy ones. The smile that stretched lips that were pale and dry had the tears falling anew.

"There is my Lucy. Don't cry. You must be brave."

Her mouth moved unbidden as she responded to her mother's last words. It felt as if she was being shredded from the inside out. But Lucy knew that this was a part of her past that made her stronger, a better person and mage. Yet that didn't mean that this memory didn't hurt any less. In fact, the wound would always be fresh; her mom was her best friend.

"If this is the best you can do, I am sorry," Lucy said softly as she let her mother's hand go and turned away. "I may still hurt and grieve for the loss of my mother. But it made me a stronger person."

Lucy felt her words were a show of bravado while inside, her heartbeat slowly, in pain, from reliving it.

"Then let's go to the next one."

Sesshomaru felt a surge of magic that was distinctly the woman's. Turning, he saw her vanish into the black and purple glow. He narrowed his eyes as he let his Youki flow freely from his body. The effect was instantaneous as the last of the insidious Spirits vanished. Taking a few steps to the small glowing orb, Sesshomaru sat down, resting his arm on his knee.

He was curious as to what kind of trail she would be facing. The clue had been fairly easy to decipher, though Sesshomaru had not given any help. The part about crossing and climbing had made him pause for a few seconds as his mind connected with the words about the void. There were many ways one could interpret that word. But in conjunction to climbing and crossing, he realized it meant water. The only place near enough to fit the description had been Mt. Hakurai.

It was rather amusing watching them dissect and piece the riddles back together. A part of Sesshomaru was fascinated by how quickly the woman's mind worked. Not even his mother, with her wit and age, was that wily. Yet Sesshomaru didn't understand what the riddle meant by void is the voice.

Letting his eyes slide shut, Sesshomaru entered a light state of meditation. He knew there was nothing he could do to help the woman. So, his only option was to wait.

Lucy gasped as she struggled through another memory; this one was newer, fresher. Her hands clenched and unclenched as she did her best not to let the memory conduct her actions. She didn't want to sacrifice Aquarius again.

"Do you yield? You are not able to face yourself and your past actions. You have too many regrets and weaknesses."

Each word was a slash to her soul, yet Lucy fought against the memory more. But with each slash, Lucy felt her repressed anger build, growing in strength. This Spirit had no right to tell her that she had regrets and weaknesses. Lucy had survived, endured, and continued. She was a fucking human, for pete's sake. Lucy was not immortal like the Spirit.

Lucy decided she wouldn't allow this to continue. This trial was a farce to hurt Lucy. Gathering her magic the way she had been taught, Lucy let it all out in a controlled explosion. The memory shattered, and the black void too vanished as a golden halo surrounded her. Slowly shifting her body, Lucy looked directly at where she felt the Spirit, who was now giving of a vibe of being surprised.

"You have no right to say I have regrets or weaknesses when I have constantly endured. Not once did I contemplate just ending my damn life, no matter how terrible it got. Every damn day was a fucking trail to keep a smile on my face and continue to walk forward as my mother taught me," Lucy snarled, her hands clenching into a tight fist. "If you want to test me, you better think about your own damn self. I think it is you who has regrets about your life and weaknesses. But if you allow me to become your friend because none of my Spirits are my tools, we can help each other be stronger in the future."

Slowly the Key shifted to a small, petite girl who was nothing but white on white holding a mirror. Her pale eyes looked up at Lucy as the Mirror shone, reflecting Lucy's heart on it. The smile that slowly(and creepily) spread across the girl's face had Lucy relaxing.

"Fine, I will accept you," The tiny Spirit said. "I am known as Kanna of the Void."

TBC!

It is November, thus National Novelist Writers Month (NaNoWriMo), and like the previous years, I will be solely focusing on writing nothing but Fairy Tail (FT) stories. And I am doing this because I want to finish them and get the hell out of a fandom that has become toxic. More so with the new insurgent group of fans that promote unhealthy and toxic behaviors and relationships.